Unit HAZE

Part 3

Part 3
When Izuka stepped back outside, the signs of dusk were becoming apparent. How long was he down there?
He confirmed the time with his cellphone, which had automatically changed its time setting upon entering this specific time zone.
It was 17:47.
(Of course. Winter nights in Britain arrive incredibly quickly, don't they.)
He decided that he should return to the hotel to rest, since it had been a long time since he had last slept, contrary to his partner, who had been sleeping the entire flight, and afterward.
With his business with ENIGMA now dealt with, he could relax for a few days.

Not far from the hotel, Izuka noticed a supermarket with a pair of ATMs. He took the opportunity to withdraw some of the local currency, and also to explore the supermarket since he had the time. However, in mere minutes he found himself picking up a large bag of peanuts.
"I should really see a counsellor about my peanut addiction........." After he placed the bag in his basket, he noticed someone walk around the corner of the isle.
"Marika-chan?"
"Ah? Oh! Tsubachi-kun, did you finish work?" Marika was wondering the supermarket, not holding a basket or using a trolley. She did no seem to be buying anything; just looking around, which may have seemed suspicious to onlookers
"Y-yeah. What about you? Looking for something?"
"W-well.......I came here to look around, but I realised that I don't have any English money......." She laughed nervously.
"Eh?"
"Well, we left so quickly, so I didn't get an exchange." Her voice turned into a mumble near the end. Was she perhaps embarrassed?
"Can't be helped. If you want something, I'll buy it for you. Also," Izuka drew closer to her "could you keep your voice down? We're getting a lot of stares. Britain isn't exactly well known for having Japanese tourists."
That was when she noticed it. They were receiving lots of stares from people who were just doing their everyday shopping.
"S-sorry."
"It's ok."
The pair wandered the shop for another hour, with Marika asking 'what is she saying?' each time there was an announcement, which both was and was not annoying to Izuka. It was irritating how may times she asked, but the way she asked was incredibly cute.
In the end, they (or more specifically Izuka) had bought some vegetables, a large piece of meat, a bottle of red wine, A few spices with exotic names and a bag of peanuts.
"I've never had wine before. Is it good?"
"It depends on your taste I guess. What alcohol do you like?"
"Hmmmm. I don't think I've ever drank that much to be honest." Amazingly, it was Izuka who had said this, with Marika being the one more experienced with alcohol.
"Eh? I'm younger than you, but I'm a more experienced drinker?"
"I hope you don't turn out to be a real lightweight. If that happens, I'll have my hands full stopping you from doing something weird." At this point, they both stopped.
"I....if that did happen.........would you.........." She was blushing profusely, "would you.........take advantage of me?"
"!? No! No no no no! I would never do something like that!" Izuka's shout only made her blush even more.
"But what if.......I was ok with it........?"
"Well............." This really was not a conversation he wanted to be having. In fact, no-one would want to have this conversation. "That stuff's in the future. Right now, I'm fine with us being how we are. Like this. Just having a conversation with you like this makes me feel relaxed." He accidentally used a cool yet cliche line that was probably from a movie or anime series.
"You say that, but.............we're old enough and..........I wouldn't mind...........trying it..........if it was with you....." Her words made even Izuka turn bright red. They were just outside the hotel, so he decided to end the subject by suggesting that they go inside where it was warmer.
Izuka carried the bags with Marika close behind. She seemed to be fidgeting a bit. Was she really serious about the earlier discussion? Well, she was visiting another country with a boy of a similar age that she had mutual feelings for, so that kind of thing would spring to mind, but.........
Izuka cherished what he and Marika had now. He wanted things to stay the same.
When they arrived at the room, Izuka fell face down on the bed. Meanwhile, Marika took the vegetables, meat and wine into the kitchen to make dinner.
(Oh yeah, I haven't eaten in quite a while. Peanuts are good, but I hardly get any nutrients out of them. Perhaps I should try toying with genetic modification?) he tried to reach for the other bag, but found that he lacked the strength to even move his arms. (Damn........how can I not notice how hungry I am? Whatever. Marika-chan is an excellent cook. She always keeps me well fed.) As his thoughts drifted to food, his stomach made a loud grumble.
To take his mind off food, he turned to the large tv mounted on the wall.
Even in his weakened condition, he could still grab the remote and turn it on. The channel that came on was showing some news program. It was going on about the government, and a recent murder.
The next channel was some boring reality show, which was most definitely the furthest thing from 'real'.
After that was a documentary about electronics. As much as he knew Marika wouldn't want to watch it, he decided to watch it for a bit whilst she was cooking.
Despite the hunger, Izuka felt great. He could smell something amazing coming from the kitchen, which satisfied him somewhat. Marika's gentle humming calmed him, making him sink into the bed more. After a few minutes, he turned off the tv since he already knew everything the documentary was saying. As a matter of fact, he could tell that some of what it was saying was either wrong or he knew of a better solution.

Shortly after drifting off into a dream, he was shook by Marika. With her face close to his, he tried to look away. Doing so brought the food into his vision.
He may have been limp from lack of food, but he still managed to run to the table at a speed that an Olympic runner would be proud of.
Marika smiled wryly as she sat opposite him.
""Itadakimasu."" Izuka tried to remain composed as he slowly tasted the delicious looking food before him.
But once he swallowed, he gave up.
"Marika-chan, how do you make food so good!?"
"Eh!? M-my cooking's not that good. You should try my sisters food."
"That's right, your sister owns a restaurant, doesn't she. Well, cooking must be in your family." Izuka happily took several more bites of his meal before speaking up again. "Speaking of family, I haven't met your parents yet. I should meet them soon."
"U-ummm........." Marika played with her food awkwardly. "About that........"
"What?"
"I haven't......... My parents don't know about you yet......" Izuka's hands stopped moving.
".......are you embarrassed about me?"
"No! I couldn't be embarrassed about you!" Marika threw herself forward, grabbing Izuka's hands across the table. Once she realised what she had done, she became flustered, sat back in her seat, and began drinking a large amount of wine. "It's just.........my father is very strict, and if he meets you......."
"Don't worry. Once you've done my kind of work, you don't fret about those kinds of things." Izuka, unlike Marika, only drank a few sips of wine occasionally, since he never really touched alcohol, or anything that would affect his performance in the field.
"Actually," Marika's voice was shaky and distorted. Was she drunk already? "What do you do, Izuka-kun?"
"W-well........"
(Wait, 'Izuka-kun'? She must be drunk. This is exactly why I asked if she was a lightweight! Anyway, even if she is drunk, I can't tell her what I do.)
"I do a bit of everything. Kind of like a jack of all trades. But on rare occasions, I am brought overseas." This was the answer that he had been told to give if ever asked about what he did. It would even pass a lie detector test, since it was still correct.
"Uh? That's sounds boring!"
"Don't call it boring since you jumped at the chance to come here with me........"
Just then, Izuka noticed that Marika was swaying a little, whilst drinking yet more wine. It looked like she was going to pass out, or even vomit. Was it even possible to be that much of a lightweight?
He gently scooped her up in his arms and carried her to the bed. While it was unhygienic for her to sleep in her clothes, Izuka could not bring himself to undress her, so all he did was place the covers over her.
He turned his back from her, and when he did-
"Whoa!" He fell back, landing on the bed. Around his shoulders were Marika's slender arms.
(Did she........pull me back?)
"Izuka-kun........" Before he could even react, Marika had dragged him fully onto the bed. "Hey, Izuka-kun, let's do it!"
"Eh!? W-what!?"
"C'mon, three months and we haven't done anything. Please!"
"N-no! I promised I wouldn't take advantage of you when you're drunk!"
"I'm not drunk!"
"That's what all drunks say........."
"Izuka-kun!" Without warning, Marika threw herself on top of Izuka. But when he looked up at her, he realised that she was asleep.
Not wanting to risk waking her, Izuka slowly reached over to the bedside table, where there was a light switch. Whoever designed this hotel must've put convenience first.
With the lights off and Marika laying on top of him, Izuka decided that the best course of action would be to sleep, since moving was likely to wake up the drunk girl.
(I thought this would happen! That's why I asked if she was a lightweight!) despite him lamenting, he could not change anything, so he closed his eyes.